


So, darling, just swear you'll stand by my side

by Elendrien, Florianna



Category: Captain America - All Media Types, Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: 5+1, Captain America Reverse Big Bang 2018, Comedy of Errors, Comic Book Violence, Fluff, M/M, Marriage, Marriage Proposal, SO MUCH FLUFF, Vignette
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-20
Updated: 2018-06-20
Packaged: 2019-05-26 06:11:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 7,431
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14994536
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Elendrien/pseuds/Elendrien, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Florianna/pseuds/Florianna
Summary: (Fic title comes from “Be My Forever” by Christina Perry and Ed Sheeran)Steve may be Captain America, jump out of planes without a parachute, wants to fight wrongs whether he’s big or small and jump on a grenade but when faced when asking the big question to his boyfriend, he wants to hide under his blankets.Bucky spent 70 years as an assassin for hydra, managed to claw his way back to a life he can probably be proud of and managed to get Steve (finally) but he chickens out at the mere thought of asking Steve to spend their lives together.The rest of the Avengers, mostly, just want to get this over with.





	1. “And I know I’m never letting this go, I'm stuck on you.”

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the caprbb where I was partnered with the lovely Elendrien who has the patient of a saint.
> 
> Thank you to the ever amazing Pohadka and foolishnotions for their beta and cheerleading.
> 
> Chap. 1 title comes from Stuck like Glue by Sugarland

Tony rolled his eyes as he watched Steve come close to the door to  his lab about a dozen time in the last hour. Tony could do this all day but he was getting curious about what had gotten Steve's panties in a bunch this time.

Steve wasn't usually shy about anything if he needed to talk to Tony and all this hesitation amused him to no end.

“JARVIS, can you please give a message to the very bad lurker who seemed to have forgotten that my doors are made of glass?”

“Of course, sir,” JARVIS answered quickly.

“Tell him to get his very patriotic ass in here before he starts digging a rut right outside my door.”

He paused, then quickly added, “Tell him he needs to learn from Natasha and his boy how to lurk properly.”

He could almost hear JARVIS sigh and he grinned.

His grin widened when he turned around to face his visitor.

“Cap! Welcome to my humble abode!” he opened his arms wide.

Steve snorted and Tony saw him fight down a grin.

“Gotcha,” he thought.

“Hey Tony, are you busy?”

Steve shifted nervously and Tony raised an eyebrow.

Well, that was new.

“Not more than usual, mon Capitan. Working on Natasha’s widow bite and new arrows for Hawkguy.  Do you need anything? Maybe something to spice up your sex life? I think I still have a prototype of those handcuffs HYDRA used on you if you want to try them out.”

Steve rolled his eyes but turned slightly red.

“Who says we don't already have a pair?” he mumbled not so quietly.

Tony paused for about half a second before laughing delightedly.

“I can't say I'm not curious but I'm worried your deadly shadow will kill me before I finish asking the question.”

He knew Barnes wasn't around.  JARVIS would have warned him. It surprised him considering…

“Where is he, by the way? He actually let you out of bed already?”

Steve scowled. “He's sparring with Nat and Thor. Sam and Clint are cheerleading. I'm fine!”

Steve had gotten too close to the flamethrowers last time they had fought AIM and had been burned.

Tony wasn't sure anyone had ever wondered but now they knew Steve wasn’t fireproof.  They could have lived out the rest of their lives without knowing. And he could have lived without seeing the Winter Soldier act like a mother hen while Doctor Cho was fixing him. Or at least the worst of the damage.

Steve being Steve, he hadn't let her fix everything since the serum would have fixed the rest in a week or so.

Tony could see the shiny new pink skin peeking from under the collar and quickly averted his eyes, lest the deadly shadow ever find out he was eyeing Cap.

“JARVIS, I want it on the record that I think Steve should go back to bed before Barnes realizes he's not there anymore.”

“Of course, sir.”

Steve just sighed.

“Tony, you know as well as I do that I'm on a limited deadline.  Be serious.”

Tony opened his mouth, then, closed it. “Go ahead, Spangles.”

Steve tightened his jaw before taking a few breaths.

“I want to ask Bucky... “ he paused and frowned, not sure how to put it.

“Tick Tock.”

“I want to ask Bucky to marry me.”

Tony just stared.

“Are you asking me for permission?”

“I'm not.” Steve gritted his teeth. “ I want a special ring. And I need a ring that'll fit his metal hand.”

Tony let out a relieved breath he didn't know he was holding.

“Oh, thank you. I thought this was going to be more sentimental.  Rings I can do, definitely.”

Steve beamed at him and Tony looked away.

“Go away, Capsicle.  I can still change my mind.”

Steve stepped towards him and Tony turned away.

“Thanks, Tony. You're the best.”

“Of course I am.”

***

Just a few days later, Tony had a few prototypes ready for Steve.  Of course, he had a bet with himself over which one Steve would choose, but that's only because neither Pepper nor Bruce wanted to play.  He could probably go see the rest of the Avengers but he was worried Clint or Thor would accidentally tell Bucky. He was pretty sure Natasha already knew.

“Sergeant Barnes is headed in your direction, sir.”

JARVIS’ voice surprised him and he flailed, dropping the rings he was holding. It took him a moment to find them all before he shoved them all in his drawer just as the door to his lab opened and Barnes was coming in.

He had gotten used to him showing up at all hours of the night when he couldn't sleep. What he couldn't get used to was just how quiet he was. He had finally made Barnes promise to make some noise when he was in the lab when he had given him a bell on a hair tie.  The look Barnes had given Tony has been featuring in some of his nightmares since then but he had kept his promise.

“Buckaroo! Coming in for a reason or just to play?”

Bucky narrowed his eyes and Tony mentally facepalmed.  He usually never bothered looking away from his project when someone came in.

Nice going, Tony.

Bucky stared at him a little while longer. Tony was pretty sure he was either reading his mind or calculating the number of ways he could be killed in his lab.

It seemed an eternity before Barnes thrust a paper at him.

“You know, I don't like it when people hand stuff to me.”

Bucky narrowed his eyes again and Tony gingerly took the paper looking it over.  It still took him a bit before he realized what he was looking at.

“Is that the drawing of a ring?” Tony paused. “Did you draw this?”

“Steve did. A long time ago.”

Tony could feel the fragility in the yellowed paper he was holding.  He grumbled under his breath.

“How did you get it then?”

Barnes just stared at him. Tony nodded.

Right. Of course. Stupid question.

“So what's this for? You want to ask him to marry you?” he asked.

He was joking of course. But Tony saw his face change and he wondered if he should backpedal or not.

“Really? But Steve…” Never let it be said that Tony really knew what was good for him.

But JARVIS was good. Maybe a little too good as he cut him off with loud music and they both jumped, Barnes reaching for the weapon he was definitely carrying. Inside his lab.  Tony knew hypothetically that he probably had one. He didn't want the confirmation.

“Thanks, JARVIS.”

Barnes frowned at him.

“What about Steve?”

“What's that?”

“You said ‘But Steve…’”

Tony blurted out the first thing that came to mind.

“You know he'd be just happy if you asked him.”

Barnes smiled.

“He deserves a special ring.”

Tony was a little unnerved by the smile and turned away.

“Give me a few days and I'll have some done for you. If there is no emergency.”

Barnes nodded and settled in his usual spot grabbing the book he’d been reading.

He had started doing that a few weeks into moving into the tower with Steve. Tony didn't know why he liked reading in his lab.  He had asked Steve but he had shrugged and mentioned something about Barnes working at the docks so maybe familiarity?

Tony had almost been insulted. His lab was nothing like the docks from the 30s.

He’d asked Barnes himself but he had gotten the “stupid question” question look so he'd let it drop. For now.


	2. “And after all this time, I’m still into you”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter title comes from I'm still into you by Paramore

Steve had no clue how to propose to Bucky, so he resorted to googling it.  “Romantic proposal” yielded a lot of good ideas. But he was pretty sure that Bucky would stab him if he even thought about any of those very public proposal ideas. 

So Steve continued perusing the internet for ideas on how to propose in new York or anywhere really.

He was glad he and JARVIS had an understanding, where everything inside their place was mostly off limits to Tony.  He really didn’t want his research into proposals of marriage to be made public knowledge just yet.

“JARVIS?”

“Yes, Captain?”

“Do you think you can give me a sort of reader’s digest? About the best waysto propose in New York City?”

“Of course, Captain. Please give me a few minutes.”

Steve nodded and stood up, not sure what to do with himself.

“Captain Rogers.”

“Yes, JARVIS?”

“The most popular ways to propose seem to be in public.  Places like parksor restaurants or even some at baseball games.”

Steve frowned.  A baseball game would be great but…

“None of these seem to be something that Sergeant Barnes would appreciate.” JARVIS continued.

Steve smiled. “You’re right about that.”

“There were suggestions about making their favourite foods and having a romantic dinner.”

Steve paused at that. “I can’t cook.”

“I do not think you need to prepare food yourself.”

“It’s a thought. Thank you JARVIS,” he says absently, already planning.

It was a good thought. Maybe he could get some burgers or breakfast from their favourite diner in Brooklyn.  Their food usually held out well in a take-out container and the owner liked them.

He nodded to himself. That’s what he’d do. Bucky was away  on a mission for a few days and when he got word he was coming back, he’d get Bucky’s favourite. 

Of course, best laid plans and all that.  He was called in to his own mission a day before Bucky was set to come back. It wasn’t like he could say no.

So he left a note for Bucky got his shield and uniform and left for Europe or the next few weeks.

Next. Few. Weeks. Steve didn’t know who he had to thank for this but whoever it was (and he was pretty sure it was probably Fury) they deserved to get his shield up their ass.

He muttered the last part loud enough for Clint to hear as they made their way back to the quinjet when they were done.

He just cackled. Steve chuckled too and flopped down on one of the seats in the quinjet. “Let’s just go home.”

“Sure, Cap. You’ll be happy to know that, according to Nat, Bucky has not yet been sent back out on the field.”

Steve sat straighter, a  calculating look on his face.

“I know that face. I don’t think a good idea has ever come out of that face.” Clint paused. “What’s up?”

“Is there a place we can land this thing in Brooklyn?”

Clint shrugged. “Sure. Bed-Stuy’s fine?”

“Perfect actually. The diner isn’t that far from there.”

“So this was all about food?”

“Not exactly.” Steve half hesitated then pulled out the ring box to show Clint.

“Ah. So that’s what it looks like.”

“You knew?” Steve blinked.

Clint grinned. “ Did you really think Tony could keep his mouth shut?”

At the look on Steve’s face, he added. “JARVIS is making sure he’s not telling Bucky.”

Steve let out breath and nodded.

“Then off to Brooklyn we go.  Incognito. Until someone sees the quinjet on the roof.  Then all bets are off.”

Steve grinned and rummaged through the quinjet, finding some wipes to clean off the worse of the dirt. He really needed to ask Tony if there was anyway to add a shower to the planes. It would make it so much easier, especially if they came back half exhausted. 

He was changed to his civilian clothes and as clean as he could make himself by the time they got to Brooklyn.

He was practically vibrating in his seat as they came back to the tower, the smell of the food just raising his anxiety levels. 

When he got to his apartment, he knew he had Clint to thank when he found it empty.

He took a quick shower and changed quickly, pulling out what he got a couple of weeks ago before he left. 

He moved the table in front of their window, that was facing in Brooklyn’s direction. Not perfect but good enough. Steve had to remember that. Or else this would never happen. He pulled out the tablecloth and some candles.  Was that too corny? Too old fashioned? Well they still did it in the restaurants so he figured it was probably safe to do it too. It took him a few minutes but then he was done.

And just in time too.  He put the finishing touches on the table just as the door opened.

He let out a breath and pulled out the ring box, half moving down to his knee before he actually listened to what he was hearing.

Bucky wasn’t alone. Dammit.

“Hey Steve, how about a movie night?” 

Shit shit shit.  He didn’t have the time to clean up everything.  Just pulled everything in the tablecloth and dropped it all between the couch and the wall.  Thank god he hadn’t lit the candles yet.

Bucky came in the living room, the rest of the Avengers trailing behind him. 

“What’s the table doing there?” Bucky asked frowning.

“Oh um, just some cleaning a little. You know I get antsy.”

Bucky just shot him a look. “ I got some food from the diner but not enough for everyone.”

“That’s okay, Cap!” Tony pulled out his phone. “We’ll order from different places and just have a potluck don't worry about it.”

Steve just nodded. “All right of course. Sounds good.”

Bucky grinned and kisses his cheek soundly. Steve only half regretted saying yes.

****

He managed to corner Clint in the kitchen a little later.

“What the hell, Clint?”

“I didn’t have a choice! Natasha suggested it, Bucky seemed to love the idea then Tony decided it was Avengers movie night!”

Steve rubbed his face. “Thank you for not telling Bucky.”

“Aw come on, Cap. I’m not that big of a screw-up. I promise. Now come on. Let’s go watch Will Smith fight aliens.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm still into you - Paramore  
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OblL026SvD4


	3. “Wait, they don’t love you like I love you”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter title comes from Maps by the Yeah Yeah Yeah

Bucky checked his backpack for the 20th time that morning.  He checked through the list in his mind: food enough for four persons, water bottle, extra sketch pads and pencils for Steve (because he tended to lose his pens, and no, it wasn’t his fault). And one last thing. He pulled out the box with the ring in it from his pocket, glancing at it. 

He thumbed it opened and looked at the ring, still slightly amazed at the work Tony had put into it. He knew it was still hard for him to be around Bucky but he sort of hoped that it was getting better.

He hurriedly put the ring back in his pocket as he heard Steve coming down the hallway.

“Are you ready? And I swear if you’re trying to find another excuse to stay inside, I’m leaving you behind.”

_ I swear, _ he thought.  _ If you’re staying behind, I’m kicking your ass. _

Steve made a face at him but was obediently pulling his hoodie and customary glasses on.

“Yeah, keep your shirt on.”

“Come on, you said so yourself, you wanted to get to the gardens for the cherry tree. It’s nice out, we don’t have a call to assemble. Stop complaining.”

“I always thought you would have preferred to stay in bed on our one day off in goodness knows how long.” Steve let out a long sigh. “I can’t believe the honeymoon is already over.”

Bucky threw him his cap and Steve laughed when it hit him. “Oh, shut up you drama queen.”

Steve laughed again and pulled on his cap.  Bucky just shook his head and lead him out. 

Not long after they made their way through the botanical gardens.

Bucky was sort of glad for the technology as he watched Steve snapping pictures with the brand new camera Sam had given him at Christmas that year.  

Bucky was fine with the camera on his phone but it did mean they didn’t need to stop every time Steve found something to draw.  Instead of sketching it, he could just snap a picture and they could move on. 

Bucky loved to watch Steve draw. Hell, he loved watching Steve do anything.  And he was better about being outdoors. But even now surrounded by families, he started to feel exposed. Too exposed.

He closed his hands around the box in his pocket and let out a breath before snapping another picture of Steve with the camera glued to his face.

(“So meta.”Natasha had texted him after the first picture and he had no idea what she meant and he didn’t bother to look it up.)

He texted the next one to Sam with the caption “Your gift is eating my boyfriend’s face.” And only received a couple dozen of HA in answer. So helpful.

He gently tugged Steve out of the way of a pregnant woman and then steered him towards the benches. 

“Come on, sweetheart, time for a break.”

Steve glanced up and nodded, finally putting the camera down.

They settled down at the bench, getting comfortable.  Steve took off his glasses and cap and Bucky was hit again at just how gorgeous Steve was.  Especially in the sun. 

Sadly, he obviously wasn’t the only one who had noticed.  He frowned as he saw more and more people glancing at them and he removed his hand from the pocket that was holding the ring.  This had been the perfect place but if Hydra was about to show up, he wanted both hands free.

He tensed for a few minutes before letting out a slow breath when nothing happened.  It took him a bit before shoving his hand back down in his pocket, his fingers curling up around the box and he stands up.

This was it.  It was as perfect as he thought it could be.

“Steve…” He started, moving closer to Steve as Steve turns to face him.

He opened his mouth and…

“Oh my god… It’s Steve Rogers!”

Bucky jumped at the shriek and pulled out his knife ready to protect Steve and himself.

That’s when he was shoved to the side and only instinct managed to keep him on his feet.  He looked around with confusion before he noticed that Steve was surrounded by kids and teenagers.  He frowned as he watched for a bit, reluctantly putting the knife away.

He fingered the box and frowned as he looked at all the cameras, flashing in Steve’s direction.

No, now wasn't the right time. This was supposed to be more private than this. 

"No," he thought. " It's not because I'm afraid hes going to say yes.  Nope."

The voice in his head that sounded like a mix between Steve and Sam just laughed at him.

It wasn’t.

He shook his head and finally took pity on him when Steve shot him a look that promised revenge if he didn't save him.

He shouldered his way through the crowd, complaints dying on their lips as they got a good look at his face.

It took a while but they were finally back.on the way home, Bucky still playing with the jewelry box.

He mentally amended the picnic plans to include the roof of the tower and with a little luck as well as some threats and bribes, maybe he and JARVIS could keep the other Avengers away.

***

Natasha watched them come back from their outing and glanced at Steve’s hand.

No ring.  She frowned.

She padded next to Bucky and watched his face for a bit.

_ “Well,” _ she glanced at him, speaking quietly in Russian,  _ “what happened?” _

_ “We were ambushed by fans,”  _ he grumbled.

She smirked and shook her head.

_"_ _ Leave us alone and make sure no one comes up to the roof and I'll make you whatever you want." _

He glared at her as he spoke, voice more clipped than usual.

" _ You couldn't ask in front of everyone?" _

_ "You are the worst." _

He narrowed his eyes even more.

" _ No busybodies!" _

_ "Not making any promises!” _

He disappeared into the elevator with Steve, the former still glaring, the latter, looking too confused.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Maps - Yeah Yeah Yeah  
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oIIxlgcuQRU


	4. “This is our fate, I’m yours”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter title comes from I'm Yours by Jason Mraz

Steve and Bucky had been out in the fields for weeks at this point. Thankfully together this time but it was still a long time to be out in the field.   Steve was getting antsy at getting a shower and going back to their own bed to sleep. In private. Privacy is good. Something they’d been sorely lacking while they were running to catch the last of AIM members around the world. Or so they hoped.

But now they were on the quinjet, going back to New York. Finally.  Steve could almost feel the pressure of the spray from the shower against his aching muscles.  The serum was a great thing, but throwing the shield so often in the last couple of weeks still left him weak.

He was half dozing next to Bucky, his head resting on his shoulder before he had a brilliant idea.

“Hey, Buck?” he murmured softly, knowing that he would  hear.

“Yeah sweetheart?” Bucky answered just as soft, seemingly  absorbed in the tablet he’s reading.

“Not today. Probably not  this week, but we should go to Coney Island.”

Bucky glanced down at him. “Actually that’d be fun. We haven’t gone in awhile.”

Steve nodded and rubbed at one of his pouches where the ring box was.  “It’d be fun. We haven’t gone out period.”

“Well, at least a couple of weeks.”

Steve weakly swatted at his thigh. “Ass. We don’t usually go out is what I meant.”

Bucky grinned. “I need to sleep for like 3 days before we go.”   


“Just three?”

Bucky shrugged roughly enough to move Steve off his shoulder before cracking up, laughing. Steve grinned at that and settled back in, lulled into a deep sleep.

The next week, he had insisted that it was time.  It wasn’t that warm yet and school wasn’t over which means that Coney Island, while not completely empty, would not be as full as it could be.

It was probably the only reason Bucky hadn’t said “no” right away to Steve.

They had had to compromise about the whole thing.  Bucky wanted to go earlier in the day and make sure they could leave whenever one of them felt the need to go. Steve didn’t mind.

Steve looked around once they got inside Luna Park. He knew it wasn’t the same one as the one from their childhood. But it still felt weird.

Bucky looked a little confused as he looked around.

“It’s not the same park,” he stated, frowning.

“Ah, no. The internet says that one burnt down while we were in Europe.  I remember hearing about it.”

Bucky frowned more and shrugged, making his way inside, moving through the crowd, heading to the concession stands. Steve grinned and followed him. Good thing they had skipped over their usual breakfast fare.

They spent the next hour or so trying out the fare from the park before making their way to the rides.

Steve was getting antsy again. And he knew Bucky knew.  But hopefully not why.

“Aw come on Steve. Don’t tell me you’re still worried about being sick again?”

They were staring at the Cyclone.  Oh, so he didn’t know why. Steve let out a relieved breath.

“What? No. I know I’m not going to get sick again.In fact, why don’t we try it out right now?”   


Bucky shot him a look. “Are you sure?”

Steve nodded, not sure he could trust his voice and dragged Bucky to the line.  It took a bit but they finally got in.

Steve was sick. Steve was so sick, it was almost pathetic.  Bucky just shook his head and handed him a bottle of water.

“OK, we’re going back home.”

Steve shook his head. “No. I’m fine, I promise.”

“There’s no Ferris Wheel, Steve.” Bucky paused. “How can you jump out of planes with no parachute but get sick when you’re on rides?”

Steve pouted. “Not all rides. Just the Cyclone.”

Bucky shook his head. “Come on, we’re going home.”

“Come on let’s go at least play some games then we can go? Please?”

Steve knew when Bucky couldn’t resist him. He could read him better than anyone else and he had Bucky. Bucky sighed and nodded, smiling a little. “Alright a few games.”

Steve was still trying to find the perfect moment to propose.

Just when he thought he had it, when he won Bucky a stuffed toy and was digging through his pocket for the ring, their phones rang.

They both froze and and looked at Steve’s phone.  An Avengers alert.

They both grumbled but made their way out of the park, still carrying the huge teddy bear Steve had won for Bucky.

The fight lasted hours. Sentient slime had crawled out of the sewers (Steve had sat through some movies about mutant turtles at Clint’s insistence so he was already wondering about the sewers and now even more so).  His shield and Bucky’s gun were basically useless against it. Tony had to rig something that would do something to their molecules. Steve wasn’t sure. He’d tuned out halfway through the explanation and was mostly still stewing about the missed opportunity.

Steve leaned against the wall in the common room, listening to the rest of the avengers complaining about the slime and Tony yelling about them not sitting or touching anything.

Sam came to stand next to him.

“You know I was this close to asking him tonight.” Steve sighed as he leaned his head against the wall.

“Got interrupted again?”

Steve nodded and groaned. “Maybe I shouldn’t even plan it. Just let it come naturally.”

“It’s a thought. Don’t worry man. When the time comes, it’ll be perfect.”

“Yeah I guess. I’m just impatient.”

“So ask him now.”   
  
“In front of everyone and all slimey?”

Sam cracked up at the look Steve was giving him.  “Hey man, if you’re really waiting for the perfect moment, you’re going to wait for a long time.”

Steve sighed. “I know, I know.”

They both dropped onto the couch, ignoring Tony's yells easily.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm yours - Jason Mraz  
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EkHTsc9PU2A


	5. “Only you can set my heart on fire”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter title from Love me like you do by Ellie Goulding

Bucky was in the grocery store.  He doesn’t usually go to the store but, since his last try at proposing, he was looking for a new idea.

His new idea was staying home.  Staying home all the time was such a nice idea. Hey, there was a reason he was choosing to go grocery shopping in the middle of the night. Steve was used to it. And by now, he knew the city better at night than during the day.

So he was making Steve’s favourite food.  Well, not exactly his favourite food but he managed to find a couple of Irish recipes that he could probably make.

So there he was, standing in the middle of the grocery store, staring at his phone and at the food in the aisles, wondering what the hell he was trying to do.

Maybe Tony had been right. Just asking him would make him happy… he didn’t have to do all that.

But he did.  He had to let Steve know just how special he was. And this was one of the way he knew how.

He had decided on making Irish stew, with soda bread and apple crumble cake.  He remembered Mrs. Rogers making crumble with whatever she could scrounge up.  He hoped it would be maybe half as good.

He had almost everything he needed. And he knew where to get what he was missing.

Sam was keeping Steve busy the next day, so he’d have the time to finish the food.

According to the recipes, he’d even have time for a short nap.  He could take the nap first but he was worried that it wouldn’t be ready by the time Steve came back from wherever Sam was taking him.

He came back after a few hours carrying a few bags of groceries with him. Jarvis made sure that he could avoid the rest of the Avengers while he was busy.

Once he was back in their place, he set himself to work.

He worked diligently at the stew and soda bread.  It wasn’t that it was more complicated than anything else he had tried to make but he was worried about messing something up so he was more careful than usual which meant that it took longer than he expected to make.

Maybe he would have the time for only a few hours but it wasn’t so bad.

He put the stew to simmer and the bread to bake before flopping down on the couch.  The alarm was set on his phone and he was sure that JARVIS could wake him up.

He slept for longer than he thought he would have. Apparently the couch was comfier than he thought.  He slapped his phone when it rang, grumbled at JARVIS when he tried to wake him.

And finally it was half the smell of burnt food and half Tony poking at him with a stick from the other side of the living room that woke him up.

Of course, “woke him up” in this case meant that he sat up suddenly, grabbed the stick that Tony was using and broke it in half with his left hand

And in a moment that Tony would have gladly denied for the rest of his life (if it wasn’t for JARVIS), he squealed and jumped back again, banging into the wall.

“What the hell is wrong with you?” Tony asked, indignant as he rubs his elbow.

“What’s wrong with me? What the hell is wrong with you? Waking me up like that. You’re lucky I’m not Natasha.”

“My tower was about to catch fire because of you.”   


Bucky rubbed his eyes before shooting a glare at him. “What the fuck are you…” He trailed off before shooting up from the couch and running to the kitchen.

He let out a small, mournful noise as he looked at the burned stew and soda bread and slid down the counter to sit on the floor.

“Why didn’t JARVIS wake me up then?”   


“I tried, Sergeant Barnes, you… didn’t want to” If there was a way for a computer to try and play on your guilt, JARVIS had it down pant.

“Sorry, buddy.”

“Sure apologize to the building,” Tony huffed. “What was that supposed to be?”

“Stuff his mom used to make.  I couldn’t sleep last night and I thought I’d surprise Steve.”

Bucky shook his head and finally stood up to clean everything up.

“I’m installing sprinklers in your place.”   


“Just here?”   


“You’re the only one who cooks!”

“It never happened before!”

Bucky was already cleaning up but still arguing with Tony by the time Steve and Sam made their way to the apartment.  The rest of the Avengers followed them, and Bucky knew the idiots had just been waiting outside their doors for either the yelling to stop or help hide either body’s if someone died.

“What happened?”   


“Absolutely nothing!” Bucky answered quickly, shooting a glare promising a thousand death at Tony.

“Yep. Nothing at all.”

“It smells like burnt food.  Bucky, what did you do?”

“I fell asleep with food simmering, OK?” He turned to Sam. “Not a word!”

Sam still grinned but motioned that he was zipping his lips shut. “Good.”

He ignored the face Sam was making at him and started cleaning up.

“Alright if you’re not going to help, out you all go. You too, Steve,” Bucky made a shooing motion with his hand.

“But…”

“No buts, Stevie. I’ll clean up and we can go out for supper, OK?”

Steve frowned but nodded. “Alright.”

Bucky waited until he heard the door closed and let out a sigh.

He jumped when a hand reached out to grab a dish towel but stopped himself from grabbing a knife.

Bruce.

“Doc, you need to be more careful.”

“Don’t worry about me. The Big Guy won’t let you do anything.”

Bucky rolled his eyes but didn’t comment.

“You were cooking for Steve? Proposal dinner?”

Bucky sighed again and nodded.

“You know he doesn’t need anything special.”   
  
“You know Tony said the same thing.”

Bruce blinked. “Really?”

Bucky shrugged and started scrubbing the pans. “Less talking more cleaning, doc.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Love me like you do by Ellie Goulding  
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AJtDXIazrMo


	6. “You're my end and my beginning"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter title from All of Me by John Legend

Bucky glanced at the creatures through the lenses of his gun. He was on the roof of one of the buildings surrounding the AIM building where the goat things were coming from.

He needed to find a name for these things because he couldn’t keep referring to them as goat things in his head. Or else, it’d get stuck then Hill would make him rewrite his entire report.

He groaned as he killed the next one that came too close to Steve. How many were there? He’s already used half of his ammo and it didn’t seem like it was going to let out.

He glanced at Clint on the other building and he could see he was going to run out of arrow soon too. He jerked back to the street and shot another creature that was coming to close to Steve’s back.

One of the creatures was thrown to the building and goddammit, that was way bigger than it looked like from afar even through the scope.

The building started shaking and he swore, packing up his things quickly before starting to run to the building where Clint was jumping over.

Clint startled but managed to not throw the arrow he was aiming. The building next to them, because such was their luck, started falling in their direction.

They both swore loudly and started running in the opposite direction.

“What the hell is going on?” Steve yelled through the coms.

“Between the hulk and those damn flying goat thing, we’ve got the building coming down,” Bucky yelled back.

Clint continued, “Trying to find a safe space to land. Sit tight.”

They stopped at the end  of the roof. There was no next  building.

“Guess we’re going down,” Bucky said.

“You know when I get thrown off buildings, there’s usually a dumpster at the bottom,” Clint told him.

The building was starting to shake.

“Well, just thank the mafia then. Now jump!”

Bucky grabbed him and jumped, twisting them around so he’d land on the bottom.

He groaned as he landed, he groaned again when Clint landed on him, swearing at him loudly.

“Shut up, you’re fine. I’m fine. We’re fine. That’s what matters.”

They both stood up and groaned. 

“Dammit, Tony. Go check on them!” Natasha’s voice was coming through their coms.

“We’re fine, Tasha. Just winded,” Clint said, rubbing at an arm.

They made their way back to the battlefield, checking their respective weapons on the way.

“The rifle is shot but the hand guns are fine. Clint?”   
  
“Bow is fine. But I need more arrows.”   


Bucky nodded and they both picked up what arrows they could find.

Bucky looked away from Clint when he heard a pained groan coming from Steve.  He and pulled out a gun, yelling, “Cap! Freeze!” He managed to shoot the creature that had jumped on his back.

He left Clint to his devices and shot his way through the creatures, making his way to stand back to back with Steve. He grinned as he prepared for the next onslaught.

He glanced back at Steve and saw that he was about to say something, so he decided to shut him up.

“Will you marry me?”

Wait. What did Steve say?

***

Steve was getting tired. They’ve been at this for hours and he felt like there was no end.  The goat things were almost infinite in numbers and, while the Hulk was making a dent in the population, it seems like the onslaught was never stopping.

He was glad he didn’t have to keep a 360 degree watch, Bucky watching his six like he always did.  Damn, if he lived through this, he didn’t care he was totally asking Bucky to marry him as soon as the fight was over.

He hit another creature with shield, flipped over the one behind it and threw his shield at a third one after knocking the other one out.  OK, it was probably dead.

He threw another one in the building on which Bucky was standing. He didn’t realise just how precarious the damn thing was so he sort of froze in the middle of the street when he saw the building start to wobble.

Bucky’s name got stuck in his throat and he finally snapped out of it when he felt one of the creature take a swipe at him.

He gasped in pain even as he threw the monster away, turning back to the building.

He watched the second building start to wobble too but not fall, not yet.

“Dammit, Tony. Go check on them!” Natasha’s voice tugged him out of his head and he slapped at another creature with his shield.

Steve let out the breath he was holding and dropped his head. Bucky was fine.

Distantly, he heard himself barking in the coms, “Status report!”

“The rifle is shot but the hand guns are fine. Clint?” Bucky was fine.  Bucky was fine. Bucky was fine.   
  
“Bow is fine. But I need more arrows.” OK, they’re both fine.

He let out a pained groan as another creature latched onto his back. He started twisting around, trying to get it off but it just dug his claws in deeper.

“Cap! Freeze!”   
  
Pure instinct and adrenaline made him freeze in his track and almost dislodged the creature.  He felt it finally fall after Bucky shot it and he almost fell to his knees, in pain and thankful that Bucky was OK.

He managed to stay on his feet though. And he was rewarded by the feel of Bucky, pressing his back to his.

He let out a shaky breath as he threw his shield at a creature.

He gathered his courage and let out another shaky breath. Could he do this?  He had to do this. Now was the time. Was it perfect? No. But it was time. This was their lives and proposing in the middle of the fight was such a Steve thing to do. 

He  glanced back at Bucky and nodded. It was time.

“Marry me, Bucky.”

Why did Bucky have to talk now? What did he say? Did he even hear me?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> All of me by John Legend  
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=450p7goxZqg


	7. “Lucky I’m in love with my best friend”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter title from Lucky by Jason Mraz and Colbie Caillat

“Will you marry me?”

They were standing back to back and both startled at the same time.  Bucky could feel the jerk of Steve’s body when he realised what he had said.  What they both had said.

Bucky dispatched another creature and glanced back at Steve. He could see the red of Steve’s ears, getting redder by the second and felt him throw the shield.  That reminded him of the creatures on his side and turned back to distractedly watch around them.

He jumped at the voice in his ears.

“Really? Really? You're both asking at the same time? And now?”

Tony's voice sounded a little strangled and Bucky was worried until he heard the Iron Man repulsors coming closer.

“I… what?” Steve stammered a little and actually missed the claws of the creature that was too close for Bucky’s comfort but before he could shoot it, it was blown off his feet by Iron Man.

“It really shouldn't be a surprise though,” came Sam’s voice next and Bucky swallowed a growl.  This is why he didn't want to ask in front of the peanut gallery.

“Has anyone noticed neither answered?” Clint sounded way too cheerful and Bucky growled again.

“That’s because they’re both going to say yes. And we know it and they know it.”

Steve swatted at another thing and Bucky shot another one. He could feel the tension radiating from Steve’s back, but, before Steve could say anything, Bucky was the one to cut down the chatter.

“All right, you bozos. We still got some goat things down here if you guys are done.”

Thankfully it went quiet enough that Bucky could finally concentrate on shooting the rest of the creatures.

“They are kinda cute. I almost feel bad for them, “ said Clint after a bit.

“Clint, they managed to level almost an entire neighborhood by themselves.” Natasha sounded incredulous.

“I know but imagine how much help they could have been."

No one answered and Bucky finally got the last of his down, turning to the side of Steve, shooting one of the last ones.

“My answer is yes, by the way,” he answered, hopefully quietly enough that the coms wouldn't pick it up.

Steve caught his shield and turn to face him, face lighting up.

“Really?” he asked, hopeful.

“Yes really.” Bucky smiled.

Steve turned bashful. “So is mine by the way.”

Bucky opened his mouth to answer but managed to pull Steve to him at the sound of Iron Man’s repulsor firing up.

Bucky whirled around, his metal arm still around Steve. “What the hell, Stark?”

“You need to stop getting distracted by Steve’s pretty blue eyes.”

Bucky snarled but finally let go of Steve.

“Are we done?”

“Of course we are.”

Natasha landed gracefully from Sam’s arms and Clint was making his way from the other building he was on.

“Tony, go get Pepper. She’s got all the papers we need.”

Bucky frowned. “What?”

“It took months and a life and death situation to even propose to each other. If you’re both amenable, we’re getting to the wedding now or else we’re going to have to wait until the world is ending.”

Bucky looked at Steve, who shrugged. He sighed. “Fine, we’ll go now.”

***

  


Steve thought the Justice of the Peace was about to faint when they got into his office.  Not only were the Avengers in her office, (he repeated that a few times, probably trying to convince herself it wasn’t a dream), but they wanted to get married. Well, two of them.

“Oh, um, of course. Do we.. do you have everything you need?”

Pepper handed over the papers and Steve shifted a little.  Everyone had their phones out to film and take photographs (for them but also for Thor, who would be sad to have missed this.)

They were still dirty, bruised, some of them a little bloody and dusty from the fight and Steve couldn’t have planned any better. 

Steve squeezed Bucky’s hand and pulled out the little ring box he had taken to carry everywhere with him. He felt a little ridiculous until he realized that Bucky had been doing the same thing.

They both smiled sheepishly at each other and Steve gave his box to Sam.  He knew if he was holding it in his hands, he’d be playing with it in his nervousness.  Were they rushing this? His brain was telling him, to just walk away with Bucky and talk about this. His heart was telling him they had been waiting 70 years for this and it was about time and to just do it already.

He let out a shaky breath.

“Are you okay?” Bucky murmured soft, watching him.

Steve nodded, not trusting his voice before clearing his throat. “Nervous that’s all.”

Bucky grinned.  Steve couldn’t help but grin back. It was going to be fine. They’d make sure of it.

The justice of the peace made his usual speech, but Steve couldn’t help but notice a few changes. Steve flushed at the obvious reference to their own personal story and ducked his head at the look Bucky was giving him. It was so tender, he still couldn’t believe his luck.

He shot a glance at Natasha and Pepper and they both grinned at him.

It passed by like a shot to Steve. The next thing he knew, Bucky was kissing him and he automatically wrapped his arms around Bucky’s waist, pulling him close.

A few minutes later, the catcalls and wolf whistles from the other Avengers finally came through his mind and he pulls back, licking his lips.

“Come on guys, we’ve got food and a party waiting back at the tower.” Tony grinned and clapped.

“Do I even want to know how you managed that one?”

“It pays to be rich.”

Steve shook his head, grinning. He half-listened to the conversation around him as they headed out of the building before something made him stop.

“Wait? How many times did you try to propose?”

The Avengers just laughed and made their way to the quinjet, leaving them alone for now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Lucky by Jason Mraz and Colbie Caillat  
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=acvIVA9-FMQ

**Author's Note:**

> Be my forever by Christina Perry and Ed Sheeran  
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=awMQlSqI564
> 
> Stuck like Glue by Sugarland  
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5iDPw_qjhtM


End file.
